


Free Bird

by fullmetul



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-04
Updated: 2016-08-04
Packaged: 2018-07-29 06:44:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7674124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fullmetul/pseuds/fullmetul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Edward teaches Ling how to braid. A short drabble.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Free Bird

Fingers comb through strings of gold and start to weave them together; easy, practiced- Edward never thought anything of it. He grabs a hair tie off of the bathroom sink and completes the finishing touches, taking a moment to take in his weary reflection as he leans his weight against the sink. Too much was on his mind; it’s an exhausting feeling. One that weighs you down- stressed to the point where you can barely tap into your other emotions. 

Al had gone down to the hotel lobby a few minutes ago, claiming they had caged birds on display near the front desk. Ed had given a scoff and waved him off- witnessing caged birds try to sing as beautifully as free birds didn’t sound like something that would cheer Ed up anytime soon.

Besides, he’ll only be reminded of himself in the same sense. 

His thoughts are interrupted when he hears the sound of a door closing, and prepares a rehearsed smile for Al. He’s sure Al is going through just as much stress he is; the last thing he wants to do is add to it. He steps out of the bathroom and flops onto the bed, flipping onto his back without bothering to look in the direction of the door. 

“How were the birds? Annoying, probably. Those things never shut up.”

The room is silent, and Ed immediately sits up and glances around.

“Al?”

The door is closed, too. Who came in? He’s about to stand up when he notices a draft, and before he can open his mouth to speak the man sitting on his windowsill like a damn pigeon raises a hand with a smile.

“Greetings!”

Ed glowers at him, brows furrowing in annoyance. 

“Can’t you use the door like a normal person?”

“Ah, but~! The doors here have locks. Windows are much more efficient.”

“Whatever. What d’ya want? Al and I are headin’ out soon.”

The prince hops down from the sill, closing the window behind him. Edward raises a brow, immediately suspicious. That’s new- usually Ling doesn’t take much care to shut anything, really(including his mouth). Thinking it must be serious, Ed’s face levels out and he sits up on the bed, eyeing him carefully.

Ling steps in front of him, crossing his arms and turing his back to him; expression equally as serious.

“I want to know…

…..

……how to braid hair.”

Ed’s expression scrunches up in confusion, gritting his teeth lightly. 

 

“Eh?”

The prince spins around to face him, before taking a few steps forward. Quickly and smoothly he reaches his hand out and takes the end of his braid between his fingers, leaning his face in real close to inspect it.

The alchemist’s face heats up immediately. His first instinct is to lean away, but for some reason, that never happens. No, he’s fixated on the scent of the young prince, the warmth he emits when he’s this close to him…

Ed shakes his head free of the spell as soon as Ling leans away again, and it feels like his body temperature has risen ten degrees.

“I’m wondering if it would look good on me. I think it looks nice on you, so- I’d like to at least try it, yes?”

Ed just gazes at him for a second.

“Ah, perfect! Glad you agree! Let’s get started, then,”

“Hey, wait a second–! I never said I’d teach you!”

But it’s too late. Ling has already sat criss cross on the floor in front of Ed, and the alchemist slaps a hand over his own face and sighs. 

“Fine. But only to get you out of here faster.”

“Yay!”

Before Ed can even blink Ling has taken out his ponytail, inky strands of hair falling along his shoulders. Ed’s a little surprised, honestly. The hair looks soft; pillowy, even. He’s not entirely sure he expected Ling to take great care of his hair in the first place. His fingers are hesitant to touch it, mostly because he doesn’t know what to expect. Will it really be as soft as it looks? Ed swallows lightly, nearly closing his eyes as he runs his hand through the locks. A shiver shoots up his spine, a small smile forming on his features. It’s totally as soft as it looks. 

Ed’s pretty sure he just spent a good two minutes ogling Ling’s hair alone, but Ling doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, Ling doesn’t seem to be reacting at all. If Ed was in his spot, he’d already be asking if it was finished. 

“Alright, well– uh…” 

Ed clears his throat lightly, trying to clear the haze from his mind. He carefully parts Ling’s hair. 

“Well, it kind of depends on what braid you wanna do, but if you just wanna go with a basic braid-”

He starts weaving his hair together.

“-you part it three ways, and then you cross the left section with the middle, then the right over the middle, and then repeat. It’s pretty simple, really.”

Ed finishes and ties the braid off quickly, letting it fall. 

“Uh, so–”

“I think I get it! Can I try on you now?”

Ed’s face immediately flushes a light pink, the prince turning around with a grin.

“Well, I–”

He stares for a moment before letting out a hard sigh, repositioning himself on the bed and patting next to him.

“Fine, just make it quick.”

The blond doesn’t bother to look behind him when he feels that weight on the bed, and he’s giving it all trying not to think about how god damn close he is. 

He nearly jumps when Ling attempts to take out his already perfected braid, settling back down soon afterwards. 

“…Stressed?”

He hears from behind him. Ed lets out another sigh, softer this time. 

“Was it really that obvious?”

“Not really. You hide it well.”

Golden eyes are focused on the bedsheets- he hadn’t realized how tight he had been gripping them. Fingers slowly loosen their hold, one by one. 

“There’s just been- a lot going on, is all. ‘s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Mmm.” 

There’s silence for a few moments, and Ed swears Ling can hear how loud his heart is beating. But the sensation of fingers through his hair, and his fingers above all else- it’s comfortable. It’s comfortable in a way that makes him want to fall asleep on the spot.

“Three parts. Left over middle, then right over middle, then repeat. Left over middle, right over middle, left…”

Ed’s already closed his eyes, body feeling about as light as a bag of bricks. Ling’s voice is soothing like this- when he’s not, y’know, yelling in Ed’s ear. Ed wasn’t even aware a voice like that could even be as soft as it is now.

“Done!”

Ed’s eyes snap open immediately, nearly losing balance and toppling off the side of the bed. 

“Already?”

A chuckle sounds from behind him.

“You sound disappointed.”

The boy’s face heats up again and he huffs. 

“I’m not. Are we done here?”

Ed reaches back to feel the braid to judge it himself. It’s pretty lopsided, and there’s a lot of loose strands. He shoots a look to Ling, who seems proud of his half-assed work. 

“I think I did a good job!”

“Not really, but whatever you wanna believe.” Ed mumbles, about to stand up. But before he can, a hand grabs his wrist. Doing the best he can to avoid eye contact, his voice comes out hoarse and cracked. 

“What’re you–”

Before he can say anything else lips press against his cheek, and he swears he can feel his heart crawling up into his throat.

“Thank you for teaching me, Edward.”

Ed can’t even breathe let alone form full sentences, but he wheezes out a small “yeah” in reply, earning a laugh from Ling, who was already opening the window back up. 

“We should do this again soon! I need to learn the other braids too.”

“Y-….yeah…”

“I will see you tomorrow morning, then!” 

With a wave he’s off, leaving the alchemist dumbfounded. Ed nearly hobbles to the window to watch the young prince hop from rooftop to rooftop gracefully, until he’s no longer visible.

“Some free bird you are, huh…” 

Ed sighs and closes the window, reaching back to touch his messy braid for a moment, but leaving it be. He then proceeds to grab his coat and step out the door, down the hotel lobby. 

 

He might as well get a glimpse of this caged bird   
before it has a chance to break free.


End file.
